CHENEY, Wash. — The Big Sky Conference released its 2026 women's soccer preseason coaches' poll and preseason all-conference team, with Eastern Washington selected to finish fifth in the conference standings.
The Eagles earned 50 points in the preseason poll, placing them in the middle of the Big Sky race. Eastern trails fourth-place Northern Arizona by 10 points while holding a comfortable advantage over sixth-place Portland State.
Weber State was chosen to place first after collecting five of the 10 first-place votes and 74 total points. Idaho finished second with four first-place votes, followed by Utah Tech, which received one first-place vote.
Leading Eastern Washington into the 2026 season is senior defender
Iris Mattern, who earned a spot on the Big Sky Preseason All-Conference Team. Mattern was the Eagles' lone preseason all-conference representative.
Northern Arizona's Micala Boex was voted the Big Sky Preseason MVP.
The Eagles have 10 non conference games to prepare for Big Sky play, with 7 of them taking place at home. The team will travel to Illinois for a two game stint to face UIC and Western Illinois, and then will travel to Colorado once to face Air Force.
Big Sky play opens at home against Idaho State on October 1st. Big Sky play is 9 games with 5 of them taking place at home and 4 of them on the road.
The Big Sky Tournament takes place in Missoula, Montana again starting November 11th.
2026 Big Sky Women's Soccer Preseason All-Conference Team
Forward
- Georgia Whitehead (Idaho)
- Micala Boex (Northern Arizona) – Preseason MVP
- Lexi Tuite (Northern Colorado)
- Jocelyn Wright (Utah Tech)
Midfield
- Sara Rodgers (Idaho)
- Bre Koscielski (Utah Tech)
- Lily Blum (Weber State)
- Oakley Anderson (Weber State)
Defense
- Iris Mattern (Eastern Washington)
- Izzy Thoma (Idaho)
- Lucie Rokos (Montana)
- Isabella Sackett (Weber State)
Goalkeeper
- Lauren Butorac (Weber State)
2026 Big Sky Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll
- Weber State (5) – 74
- Idaho (4) – 70
- Utah Tech (1) – 63
- Northern Arizona – 60
- Eastern Washington – 50
- Portland State – 36
- Montana – 33
- Idaho State – 28
- Northern Colorado – 25
- Southern Utah – 11
() indicate first-place votes.
Join the Eagle Athletic Fund for as low as $50 per year! Support Eagle student-athletes on and off the field while enjoying exclusive EAF perks such as season ticket and tailgating priority, invitations to special events, exclusive access and more. Visit goeags.com/eaf for more information.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
FOLLOW THE EAGLES
SOCIAL: Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram
